IRacing Motorsport Terms: S Terms
S Terms: ;# Safety car : A safety car or pace car limits the speed of competing cars on a racetrack in the case of an accident or caution periods caused by obstruction/s on the track. ; 2. Sandbag : To gain a competitive advantage by deliberately underperforming at an event. ; 3. Sandtrap : An area at the very end of a dragstrip to slow down and stop vehicles that have gone off the track, it is filled with, as the name implies, sand. The design of the sandtrap is intentional, and used as a safety device. ; 4. Satellite team : A second racing team either operated by or in partnership with a larger team but maintaining a separate identity. The team may share vehicles and technology with the main operation, or may develop the careers of upcoming drivers, such as Scuderia Toro Rosso. ; 5. Scattershield : A bellhousing or external shield surrounding a bellhousing, and designed to contain metal fragments in the event of clutch and/or flywheel failure. The term also refers a metal shield intended to contain fragments in case of catastrophic transmission failure. ; 6. Scratch race : A type of race which competitors start on an equal term. ; 7. Scrub : Also known as the Bubba Scrub; a jump technique in motocross in which the rider transfer their weight to the bike sideways at the face of the jump for a lower trajectory which decreases time spent in the air. ; 8. Scrutineer : A qualified official who examines racing vehicles pre-race for compliance with the rules of competition, usually in a scrutineering bay adjacent to the pit lane. ; 9. Scuffs : Tires which have been used limitedly, but are not worn out. Scuffs may be put on a car during a pit stop to improve handling. At times, brand new tires may be 'scuffed in' before a race by practicing in them for a lap or two. (See "Sticker tires") ; 10. Sector : A section of one complete lap of the circuit used for timing purposes. For the purposes of Formula One, each circuit is split into three sectors. ; 11. Semi-automatic gearbox : A motorsport application, created initially by Scuderia Ferrari for Formula One, in which the driver can change gears manually, but without having to manually activate the clutch. On open wheel race cars it is usually activated by paddles immediately behind the steering wheel, although touring cars and rally usually place the gear shifter as a gear stick in the more conventional position on the centre console, but occasionally is mounted as a stalk off the steering column, when activated, automatically engages the clutch and changes the gear and releases the clutch without any further input from the driver. ; 12. Semi feature, B-main, Qualifier : A qualifying race before the main event, where non-qualified cars compete for a predetermined number of spots in the main event. Some races have a C-main where the top finisher(s) qualify for the B-main. At those events, the main event is known as the "A-main". ; 13. Setup : The set of adjustments made to the vehicle in order to optimize its behavior. ; 14. Shakedown : The first test of a new vehicle. ; 15. Short shifting : A technique used, primarily in motorsport, to regain control of a car through a high speed corner. Involves the driver shifting up a gear earlier than usual. ; 16. Shunt : A crash. Usually side to side contact. ; 17. Sidepod : Aerodynamic device to improve airflow between front and rear wheels on open wheel racing car which also covers ancillary equipment within car, most often water radiators which are air cooled by ram scoops at the open front of the sidepods. ; 18. Silly season : The period near and after the conclusion of the racing season in which teams and drivers may begin preparing to make changes for the upcoming season. Potential changes at a team may be new or different drivers, sponsors, engines/chassis, team personnel, adding or eliminating cars. Rumors often run rampant during the early stages of Silly season. In some rare cases, teams may actually implement the planned changes during Silly season rather than wait until the start of the new season. Such a move may give them a head start on the upcoming season, and/or may alleviate "lame duck" situations. ; 19. Sipe a tire : To use a razor blade to cut a tire's thread causing the rubber to break off. Grooving or Cutting a tire means to use a tool to add additional grooves to a tire to adjust handling for a track. ; 20. Skid plate : Metal plates, most commonly titanium, fixed to the bottom of flat bottomed racing cars on the undertray facing the racing surface, put there to protect the undertray from ground strikes tearing through the undertray. Today less common as racing cars usually are mandated to have a ground clearance that is less critical to hitting the track. ; 21. Slick (clay oval) : A phenomenon caused by the drying out of the clay surface on short circuit oval tracks. The clay circuits that do not maintain a minimum percentage of moisture on the track surface will cause the clay to dry out. This problem will cause the rubber of the specialized clay circuit tires to prematurely wear much in the same way asphalt or concrete paved circuits do, giving the track surface a noticeably black shade. ; 22. Slick (tire) : A tiree with no tread pattern, maximising the amount of tire rubber in contact with the racing surface. A specialist motor racing application as in wet weather conditions these tires have little resistance to aquaplaning. ; 23. Slidejob pass : Especially in dirt oval racing, a passing car dives low into a corner, deliberately oversteers in front of the vehicle being passed in an attempt to slow their momentum. The vehicle being passed often attempts to pass back by steering low coming out of the corner down the following straightaway. ; 24. Slingshot : front-engined dragster, named for the driving position behind the rear wheels (erroneously attributed to launch speed). ; 25. Slipstreaming : A car following close behind another uses the slipstream created by the lead car to close the gap between them or pass it. Same as drafting. ; 26. Smoking the tires : Also called Lighting the hides, or Blowing the tires off. A term used mostly in drag racing when a loss of traction occurs, causing the rear tires to rise, and smoke profusely. This usually happens off the starting line. When this happens during a race, it usually results in a loss, unless the opponent also loses traction as well. ; 27. Spare car : A car used by a driver if he has damaged his main car. It may or may not have the same setup as the primary car. Now banned in Formula One for cost-cutting reasons, though teams in many other major racing series have a spare car available at the track. At Indianapolis, it is traditionally called a "T Car" ("T" loosely short for "training") ; 28. Special stage : A section of road or track, closed off used for timed runs in rallying. A rally is made up of a number of special stages. ; 29. Spin turn : A semi-doughnut which a driver use to turn themselves to a correct position on a tight space without the need of a reverse gear. ; 30. Splash and dash, Splash and go : A pit stop which involves refueling the car only, often less than a full tank. ; 31. Splitter : Also referred to as the front Spoiler, Front Air Dam, or Diffuser. Aerodynamic device placed on the nose of some touring cars and GTs to improve airflow around the nose of the car and sometimes create downforce for the front wheels to aid steering. It is prominent on NASCAR's Car of Tomorrow body style. ; 32. Spoiler : Aerodynamic device attached to the trailing edge of a race car to increase its rear downforce. The difference between a spoiler and a wing is that wings are generally multi-element with air passing both above and below the aerodynamic surface, whereas a spoiler is flush fitted to the car's bodywork. ; 33. Spotter : a person, positioned high above the circuit, who communicates what is going on the track to the driver ; 34. Stagger : the difference in circumference between the left and right tires. It is used to make a racing car turn easier on oval tracks. ; 35. Standing start : A starting method where the race machines are stationary on the grid. ; 36. Start and park : A team or driver who qualifies and starts a race but only runs a small number of laps to avoid using up resources (tires, parts, pit crew, etc...). The start and park will intentionally drop out of the race, placing last or near to last, but still collect the corresponding prize money and championship points. ; 37. Steward : The adjudicator or referee at a race meeting who interprets incidents and decides whether penalties or fines should be issued. ; 38. Sticker tires : Brand new tires put on a race car. Nicknamed "sticker tires" because the manufacturer's labels are still visible. (Opposite of "Scuffs") ; 39. Stint : The period a driver is at the wheel in an event involving more than one driver in the vehicle. Sometimes refers to the period of driving between pit stops. ; 40. Stop-go penalty : A penalty assessed to a driver for an on-track infraction that requires them to enter their pit box (or in some cases a special penalty pit box) and come to a complete stop before resuming. No work is allowed to be done on the car during the penalty, even if it is being served in the driver's own pit box. Doing work on the car would negate the serving of the penalty, and the penalty would have to be re-served the next time around. In some cases, the car is held in the box for a specified number of seconds before being allowed to resume. Sometimes called a Stop and go penalty. Since the early/mid-1990s, this penalty has seen less use, and is instead typically replaced by the Drive-through penalty. The drive-through penalty requires a driver to enter and drive through the pit road (below the pit road speed limit), before returning to the track. When pit lane speed limits became standard in motorsport in the early 1990s, the drive-through penalty was deemed sufficient, while stop-go penalties (when coupled with the now slow pit speed limits) were now considered excessive. ; 41. Success ballast : A method used to level performance between competitors by adding weight to cars that win races or are successful. Sometimes referred to as Lead trophy as the usage of lead bars is most popular in applying the additional weight. ; 42. Superpole, or Shootout : A selection procedure in which the ten or 15 fastest qualifiers compete for grid positions in a single-lap effort without other vehicles on the track. While not specifically referenced, most NASCAR races will use this style of qualifying for all cars. ; 43. Support race : A race(s) that takes place before and/or after the main event race. It may also be held during a qualifying day, and is often used to provide a fuller weekend of track activity. It is normally a race from a lower or "ladder" series, is usually shorter in duration, and in some cases might feature some moonlighting drivers from the main event. It is analogous to undercard in other sports. Category:IRacing Motorsport Terms: S Terms